Have you or a loved one recently been involved in an automobile accident? Are you worried about your increasing medical bills and are wondering what to do next? Car accidents can be scary, even if they have happened to someone else and not yourself. This can make it difficult to think about the next steps that you need to take to handle the accident. But one thing that you should seriously consider is hiring a car accident lawyer. But before you hire any lawyer, here are some important questions that you should ask him or her:

Will this case need to go to court? If you have a very strong case, there is a good chance that the insurance company will offer you a valid settlement before the case actually goes before a judge. While your car accident lawyer can't know for sure that this will happen, he or she can make an educated guess based on past cases that he or she has handled before. Your lawyer will be able to give you general information about these past cases, giving you a better idea of what to expect with your own case.

How long is left to file a lawsuit? As soon as an accident happens, a number of clocks start ticking. The most important one, as far as the court is concerned, is the statute of limitations. If this runs out, you'll be unable to file a case in court. The length of time that you have will vary depending on both who is at fault and what state that you live in. In some cases, you might have as long as six years to file a lawsuit. In other instances, your time might run out in as few as 60 days. Because of this variance, it's important to talk to a car accident lawyer as soon as possible so that you can get everything started.

What sort of fees do you charge? A car accident lawyer will usually not expect any fees up front. Instead, he or she will take a percentage of the amount that you are awarded once the court case is over. This percentage can vary depending on where you live and whether or not you're expected to pay any other fees out of your portion of the settlement. For example, the lawyer may need to hire a private investigator to track down a particular eyewitness to your accident. Some lawyers may pay for this out of their portion of the settlement, while others will expect you to pay for it with yours. Since you may not have been awarded any money at all without the lawyer's help, paying for the private investigator should be worth the trouble. However, knowing what you'll be expected to pay can help you to make better plans for the future.